GAHANNA,
Ohio, Oct. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AEP Ohio, an
American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP) company, today filed a
settlement agreement that addresses the extreme power needs of
Ohio's growing data center
industry while protecting AEP Ohio's other customers. The staff of
the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, the Ohio Consumers' Counsel (OCC), the
Ohio Energy Group (OEG), Ohio Partners for Affordable Energy, and
Walmart joined AEP Ohio in the filing.
"Ohio's economic success in
bringing data centers to our state comes with immense demands for
electricity, and we have to meet those efficiently and
responsibly," said Marc Reitter, AEP
Ohio president and chief operating officer. "The agreement
insulates our other customers – including residents, small
businesses, manufacturers and other industries – from the impact of
the necessary infrastructure improvements. Our goal throughout this
process has been to provide customers with protections, while
keeping Ohio an attractive place
to run and grow a business. This proposal provides that balance and
was developed with PUCO staff and consumer advocates. I'm grateful
for the hard work of all of our stakeholders."
This agreement, which is subject to review and approval by the
PUCO, requires large new data center customers to pay for a minimum
of 85% of the energy they say they need each month – even if they
use less – to cover the cost of infrastructure needed to bring
electricity to those facilities. It also creates a sliding scale
that allows small and mid-sized data centers more flexibility. And
it requires data centers to provide proof they are financially
viable and able to meet those requirements, as well as to pay an
exit fee if their project is canceled or unable to meet the
obligations outlined in the electric service agreement
contract.
The requirements would be in place for up to 12 years, including
a 4-year ramp-up period.
The agreement also outlines a process to end the moratorium on
new Central Ohio data center
agreements.
The settlement filed today by AEP Ohio, PUCO staff, the Ohio
Consumers' Counsel, OEG – a manufacturing coalition – and others is
the latest in PUCO case no. 24-508-EL-ATA. The case began in
May 2024, when AEP Ohio filed a
proposal to reconcile the costs of infrastructure improvements
required for Ohio's growing data
center industry.
Earlier this month, a group of data center industry leaders
filed a separate agreement, which was not supported by AEP Ohio,
the PUCO staff, OCC, or OEG. They proposed to pay for a minimum of
75% of the energy they say they will use and excluded important
customer protections and included other problematic provisions in
their deal.
Data center development has expanded rapidly in recent years
across AEP Ohio's service territory, especially in Central Ohio. Electricity demand in
Central Ohio, driven largely by
data centers, already is expected to more than double by 2030.
"Our proposal recognizes the importance of data centers, not
only to our region and Ohio's
economy, but to the country at large," Reitter said. "We welcome
the incredible investment large data centers are making in
Ohio. Our agreement strikes a
balance between the costly investments required for high-powered
cloud and AI needs and protections for AEP Ohio's other
customers."
AEP Ohio is based in Gahanna,
Ohio, and is a unit of American Electric Power. AEP Ohio
provides electricity to 1.5 million customers across 61 counties.
News and information about AEP Ohio can be found at
AEPOhio.com.
At American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, we understand that our
customers and communities depend on safe, reliable and affordable
power. Our nearly 17,000 employees operate and maintain more than
40,000 miles of transmission lines, the nation's largest electric
transmission system, and more than 225,000 miles of distribution
lines to deliver power to 5.6 million customers in 11 states. AEP
also is one of the nation's largest electricity producers with
approximately 29,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity,
including nearly 6,000 megawatts of renewable energy. AEP is
investing $43 billion over the next
five years to make the electric grid cleaner and more reliable. We
are on track to reach an 80% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions
from 2005 levels by 2030 and have a goal to achieve net zero by
2045. AEP is recognized consistently for its focus on
sustainability, community engagement and inclusion. AEP's family of
companies includes utilities AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power
(in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in
Tennessee), Indiana Michigan
Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power
Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana, east Texas and the Texas
Panhandle). AEP also owns AEP Energy, which provides
innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more
information, visit aep.com.
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SOURCE AEP Ohio